Erose
by lye tea
Summary: The collective unconscious. /Ensemble/


**Erose **

_01. Focus _

Aang focuses hard, mends his thoughts tight, and thinks (strange) her hand soft, resting there—on his cheek.

_02. Civilization _

With civilizations came humans, and with humans, there came destruction, inevitable and annoying.

_03. Sink _

It took her a while, to let it sink, that the world was ending (and so was she).

_04. Bullet _

The sword came at her bullet-fast, pierced the air (and her flesh) and Azula cried, and Azula burned (up herself) till her hair, body, and not-soul were all gone up in smoke.

_05. Count _

Count your fortunes, count your ways, because the Fire Nation took them away—as eventual taxes, as in For Your Own Good.

_06. Mental _

He thinks he's going mental, lying awake breathing in the night, thinks of her face and _her face_, and soon, Sokka didn't have a face either—just like _them_.

_07.__ Coast_

"The coast is clear!" (whatever, however, that meant), too bad, they were slow and Azula's caught them at last.

_ 08. Fence _

A fence separated their houses and a lifetime separated them.

_09. Circle _

"We're going around in circles!" Toph cried, and no one heard (no one ever heard a deaf child).

_ 10. Thin _

She was becoming too thin, too fragile, and too much like a damn willow tree, because they were starving, and Song hated him.

_11. Room _

Outside the sun sent in long streaks of pain and light, but in the room, there was a dim sickness decaying all her bones—till one day, Song fell in the lake (like her mother, like her grandmother long, long ago).

_12. Blaze _

Let them come, let them run, I'll conjure up a blaze, and melt their fingers and limbs all together.

_13. Thought _

"It was just a thought," Zuko said, "Yeah, well, don't," Katara finished—weary and dead.

_14. Jealous _

I-am-not-jealous-of-you! —not,_not_ jealous of a dead girl.

_15. Sand _

The sands along the southern beaches have all been painted black, and now, no one could recall if they were ever white, white for failure, for defeat.

_16. Doll _

Like a doll, her mother thought (damn you, Ty Lee's eyes burned with vivid hate).

_17. Curl _

Helpless, cunning-less, Iroh pretend-cowered into a tiny shell, and inside-laughed as saliva spilled down his belly.

_ 18. Farewell_

So long, farewell, till we meet again (in hell, when your wounds eternally bleed).

_19. Story _

"Tell me a story," she said, "Once Upon A Time, the world died."

_ 20. Soft _

The pads of Aang's fingers are soft, unlike Toph's, which were covered and mottled with a lifetime's worth of calluses and memories.

_21. Pool _

La & Tui have a secret conversation when everyone slept, and in their watery home they said: We have nothing to fear, we can never die (and the next day, the hearse came—reversed).

_22. Serpent _

A serpent laid underneath the scattered maple leaves, Azula bent down and kissed his head and cooed sweet, lulling words, and then bit into its neck.

_ 23. Prey _

Hunter and prey, which one are you, dear Prince Zu-Zu?

_24. Friend _

When everything had been said, when the million bodies buried and dead, friend and foe made no real difference, not anymore.

_25. Still _

Aunt Wu sat down and listened (for once) and heard the volcano sigh and cry all the years they missed, shared, and regretted.

_26. Exhausted _

The run, three days and three nights, and Katara kept having this perplexing look on her face: as if she was afraid they were still alive.

_27. Bold _

The inky strokes are bold and disparaging, and Azula crumbles up the paper in frustration, at herself, at why won't Mother love me?

_28. Hook _

He's got her hooked and chained, just like she wanted.

_29. Attraction _

Attractions called, attractions failed, and the barest attraction Zuko had was wasted on her, her Katara, who needed to be de-skinned.

_30. Will _

"My will is stronger," Mai giggled, drunk.

_31. Bed _

"Oh, Zu-Zu, come back to bed," she mocked, baring her teeth like a lioness starved (famished for blood and akin flesh).

_32. Bell_

The monks rang the bell feverishly, but the bisons all died, one by one.

_33. Joy _

Joy was not really a good thing because it deluded people into thinking there was goodness left (when they were surrounded and mutilated).

_34. Decade _

A decade passed, and a new regime began—so did prosperity and posterity.

_ 35. Test _

It'sjustatest, he yelled, but the lights danced haphazardly, _flicker_ they go till he's consumed.

_36. Gentle_

Ursa was gentle while Ozai was not, but Ozai was the better parent (in the _long_ run), and even she agreed.

_ 37. Hunger _

Jin felt her stomach cave and scream, but there was no food, and so, her face—resolute—remained gaunt.

_38. Mute_

Sometimes, Katara wished Toph was also mute, but only _sometimes_.

_ 39. Quicken _

Hurry hurry _hurry_, before the sun fell and the earth tilted on its axis and his scalp started to bleed again.

_ 40. Absence _

In his absence, Sokka entrusted Aang to care for his sister, without ever realizing that she was older, that she was ancient and spent.

_41. Maze _

Oma & Shu created a maze, so dreadfully long ago, and when they died, love was slain too.

_42. Close _

The armies closed in, from the east north south & west, till there was no escape, till he was forced to fight (yeah, as The Avatar).

_43. Reign _

A Reign of Terror, that Azula liked very much, if only Ozai would just _die_.

_44. Crush _

Crush your dreams, crush your heart, and watch it oxidize (last) and know that your lover is free—from you—at long last, _free_.

_ 45. Run _

Onji ran and stumbled and fell, and her mother reached for her hand, thin, fragile, Onji slipped through.

_ 46. Art _

The art of failing was a difficult one to master, but not for Zuko, who was a true advocate.

_47. Pressure_

Pressure increased as the sea grew deep, but high in the skis, Aang could feel his head bursting too—odd, that _that_ should happen.

_ 48. Echo _

Azula called, and Ozai echoed (and never realized just who was manipulating who).

_49. Heal _

"I can heal that," Katara said, but her hands faltered as she touched his blistering, grim-ugly scar.

_50. Clear _

Without a single cloud, determent and demarcation, Appa took fight and took Momo along too—flying over little heads and sharing a rare, inhumane elation.


End file.
